
Courtesy: Ferrari/F1
Lewis Hamilton made his Ferrari F1 debut on Wednesday, January 22 at the team's Fiorano test track. Hamilton, a seven-time world champion who joined Ferrari at the start of the year, drove the team's new Formula One car on the test track. Last year, Hamilton shocked the world when he announced that he would be leaving Mercedes, the team that had helped him win six world championships. The English racing driver fulfilled his childhood dream by signing a multi-year contract with Ferrari. His test followed two days of work at Ferrari's Maranello factory, which includes the Fiorano track. Hamilton finished his firstrun shortly after 11:00 a.m. local time.
Charles Leclerc, a teammate, will drive the car in the afternoon as he begins to regain speed following the winter break. Expressing his experience, Hamilton on his Instagram account, "There are some days you know you'll remember forever, and today, my first as a Ferrari driver, is one of those days. I've been fortunate to achieve things I never thought possible in my career, but part of me has always dreamed of racing in red. I’m beyond thrilled to see that dream come true today."
1,000km of limited test for Lewis Hamilton to know Ferrari's engine
According to reports, Hamilton will be limited to 1,000 kilometres (621 miles) as per the vehicle testing under F1 regulations. The test will help him know how the Ferrari engine works, and allow him to develop trust and working procedures with his new racing engineer, Riccardo Adami, and the rest of the squad.
Adami has spent the last four years working with Carlos Sainz and, before that, four-time champion Sebastian Vettel. Hamilton has exclusively driven Mercedes engines in his 18-year Formula One career. Modern Formula One engines are 1.6-litre V6 turbo hybrids with advanced energy recovery systems and complex control mechanisms, many of which are managed by the driver from the cockpit.
Hamilton might be testing at Spain's Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya in the coming weeks before the team's 2025 model is unveiled on February 19. Hamilton is all set to have his first official appearance as a Ferrari driver on February 18th, at the F1 season launch at the O2 in London, which all teams and drivers must attend.